The Sunshine Blogger Awards #6

I wasn’t actually going to do this again, as I felt like #5 times was enough. But then the amazing Kate @Kate’s Beauty Home nominated me, and I just couldn’t resist! If you haven’t checked out Kate’s blog yet, you’re missing out!

QUESTIONS FROM KATE:

1. What interested you in blogging to begin with and gave you a kick to starting?

I’ve just answered another question about pretty much the same thing, so I’ll be completely unoriginal here, and copy that:

For me it was a combination of things! I’ve wanted to start a book blog for the last 2 years, but I always doubted if I could or should do it. I’ve been following other book bloggers, and seen their amazing journey, which both inspired me and had me doubt myself. (First lesson about blogging: don’t compare yourself to others!).

Then in May this year the stars aligned. I was studying full time, which meant I was reading a lot more, and thus had more reviews to share. I’d already reviewed a LOT of books on Goodreads, Amazon etc. So I had a lot of content ready to share. In the end my boyfriend and friends were like “just do it already, Bibi” – and they were right! There’s no such thing as instant success, no matter how prepared you might be. So, I went for it and I’m glad I did

2. Who has been your biggest inspiration withing the blogging community?

I’ve always really liked Maryse’s blog. Not just for reviews and recommendations, but mostly for her lists. If you look through her blog, you’ll see lists of recommendations for big hype romance books. Like, what to read after Twilight etc. Actually, I think its almost solely thanks to Maryse, that my TBR is out of control!

3. How do you plan/prep your posts?

Well there’s no easy answer to this one! I often try and plan things, but then someone will tag me in something awesome. Or I’ll get an ARC or beta sent to me, that screws up my plans. That’s why sometimes when a tag is posted on my blog, the answers seem out dated, as I often have to postpone them. I don’t mind this at all! Especially not now that I’m working, as it helps me stay ahead on blog posts without stressing.

But I guess what I also do is, I look at what I go through. Like, am I struggling with layout codes? Am I wondering about something? All that is taken into consideration. I don’t know how much I actually prep. At the beginning of each post, I kind of just word vomit all over the place, then save it as a draft. I’ll then come back later on, and tidy it up.

4. Do you have any tips or advice you’d like to share on getting started with a blog?

My blog is only 3 months old, so I’m still in the early stages. But I guess the best advice I can share is this: don’t compare yourself with another blogger!

Fact is this, there’s a lot of established and big bloggers in each and every niche. Many of them have worked hard for years, to be where they’re at! So if you compare yourself to them, you might end up getting demotivated or feeling like a failure.

Also, I think its important to think long and hard about what success is to you. Is it to be paid for blogging? Is it to have 10k likes, comments or views a day? For me I love each and every like, follow and comment I receive. And yes, I would lie if I said I wouldn’t love to be paid for reading. However, as my life is at the moment, I don’t think I could cope with such crazy blog traffic. So, if I had that, I wouldn’t have time to interact with everyone, and that means a lot to me.

5. How do you get in the mood to start writing? (If I don’t have a cu of tea, a candle burning and earrings in… It’s not happening)

Hmm… I honestly don’t know! I mean once I finish a book, I try to sit down and write the review. The mood usually comes from the feelings I went through, while reading the book. If I’m writing other things, the mood usually comes from my inspiration. I don’t write about things I don’t want to, so I honestly don’t need much to get in the “mood”.

6. How do you cope with writers block?

I’ll let you know once I experience it.

7. What has been your most fun post to date? (Add a link so we can all have a good read)

Okay, there’s 2 different ones for this one.

⭐️ Playing with the codes – this was a lot of fun, and challenging for me, as I’m hopeless with HTML. But it did teach me some great tips, for future posts.

⭐️ Let’s talk about the importance of reviews – as a book blogger, this is obviously a big part of what I do. But this post gave me a better insight into reviews, from the authors point of view. And I was lucky enough, to have 3 lovely ladies help me with this.

8. Have you been to any amazing events as a result of your blog, if so where? If not are there any you’d like to attend?

I have not! But I’d love to go to some US book con’s next year, if my budget will allow it.

9. How do you feel about the photography game that comes with blogging?

What photography game would that be? Just taking photo’s in general? If so, I haven’t done much of it yet. But when I do start, I know my go-to person will be Jennifer. Seriously, have a look at her blog, her pictures are incredibly beautiful!

10. What do you hope to achieve from your blog space?

I don’t as such have an end goal in mind. I mean, I’m doing it because I like it and because I have fun with it. All the awesome people I mean and get to interact with, is just the cherry on top of this awesome sunday. So, as long as that continues, I’m considering that a success!

11. Can you sum up how blogging makes you feel in three words?

Not

A

Chance

LOL – what can I say, I love it.

I NOMINATE:

Last time around I didn’t nominate anyone, because I’ve lost track of who I’ve nominated and who’s done it already. So, I’ll nominate some of my newest followers, that I really want to get to know better:

Sharing is caring!

Like this:

Related

Post navigation

6 thoughts on “The Sunshine Blogger Awards #6”

You are so good to me, Bibi, I just do not deserve it! Thank you for the compliment on my photos. ☺️ (that’s me blushing!) ♥️ xo I’m actually glad you reposted the code post because I could use some help with that! 💕